NEWS: Judge Issues Preliminary Injunction Giving Class of 2022 (D1) Athletes Fifth Year of Eligibility, Appeal Expected

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On Friday evening, Charlotte Sweeney, a U.S. District Judge in Denver, Colorado, temporarily ruled that high school Class of 2022 student athletes, who began Division One competition at the start of the 2022-23 academic calendar year, can receive a fifth year of eligibility within the NCAA.

The preliminary injunction stems from an eligibility-based rule change that was announced by the NCAA in late June. Known as the "five-for-five" rule, the NCAA did not grant a fifth year of eligibility to seniors who originally expired their athletic eligibility at the conclusion of the 2025-26 academic calendar year.

The NCAA fully intends to appeal.

Sweeney's ruling has the potential to create logistical chaos among collegiate compliance departments over the next year. Athletes who were once expected to be out of eligibility could theoretically return for a fifth year of competition as soon as this fall.

However, with the ruling coming in late July, the collegiate careers of once-departed NCAA track and field and cross country athletes hang in limbo. With stricter roster limits now in place, and rosters at/near finalization for the fall of 2026, the challenges to reintroduce athletes who were once thought to be out of eligibility are significant.

Questions also remain as they pertain to transfer scenarios and those aforementioned roster limits. It's also possible that an appeal by the NCAA is successful, although current sentiment and speculation from coaches around the country is that the ruling will hold.

"I don’t think it’s as big of deal in distance running as it is in Football, Basketball, Baseball," one coach told The Stride Report via text. "Could see it having more of an impact on the Track. With some light impacts on XC."

"There won’t be that many," another coach told The Stride Report in regards to returning fifth-year athletes. "A few for sure but not program changing. It’s going to be hard because school starts in two weeks, it's not exactly easy to get people into a grad school program in two weeks."

The following memo was recently released by the NCAA's Chief Legal Officer, Scott Bearby...

"Colleagues, The District Court of Colorado's decision (Wisne v. NCAA) is egregiously wrong. The court's decision to certify a nationwide class and grant sweeping injunctive relief with virtually no evidence, and without witness testimony or even so much as a hearing, invites further chaos in college sports and irreparably harms thousands of student-athletes already on campus. The Court has not yet entered an order specifying what it is purporting to enjoin—a requirement under the law. We will seek that clarification immediately. But to be clear, one federal court cannot enjoin a settlement approved and entered by another court. The House injunction remains in effect according to its plain terms. The Colorado court plainly lacks the authority to undermine the House injunction, which all of the plaintiffs in the Colorado case are bound by, including the roster limits and revenue share cap. We intend to appeal the Colorado order and will seek to restore the status quo as soon as possible to protect participation opportunities for the countless student-athletes who chose where to attend school based on the understanding that the rules adopted by the NCAA's member institutions would be applied as written. Schools and coaches must make their own independent decisions, but an injunction is intended to be short in duration and the NCAA intends to appeal it on an expedited basis. The membership made a considered decision about the timing of the Age-Based Eligibility Rule in order to protect competitive opportunities for thousands of student-athletes already on campus. Every federal circuit to address similarly flawed legal claims and similarly deficient evidentiary record has reversed."